Copyright 2000 The Washington Post
The Washington
Post
November 23, 2000, Thursday, Final Edition
SECTION: HOWARD EXTRA; Pg. M05
LENGTH: 509 words
HEADLINE:
BWI NOTES
BODY:
Merger Could Have Costly
Effect on Airport
Baltimore-Washington International Airport may lose up
to 700,000 passengers a year if a proposed merger between
United Airlines and US Airways is finalized, David Blackshear,
head of the Maryland Aviation Administration, said recently.
The $ 11.6
million deal would immediately eliminate MetroJet service in and out of BWI,
cutting approximately 75 flights a day.
During remarks before a Nov. 1
meeting of the BWI Business Partnership, Blackshear also said he feared that BWI
would no longer be distinguished from Washington and Philadelphia airports.
Without MetroJet, the low-cost airline U.S. Airways created to compete with
Southwest, there is likely to be less of the intense competition that drove
airline ticket prices down and produced more flights to more cities. Although
the state of Maryland is concerned about the ramifications, it has not filed a
formal objection to the merger. The state is actively discussing the impact on
BWI and looking at its options, said Jack Cahalan, a Maryland Department of
Transportation spokesman.
The threat of passenger loss comes as BWI is
about to begin a five-year, $ 1.3 billion project to overhaul the airport and
better accommodate its recent growth.
2 More Chances to Fly to Newburgh,
N.Y.
Beginning Dec. 2, USAirways Express will offer two round-trip
flights between BWI and Stewart International Airport in Newburgh, N.Y., every
weekday. Planes will depart from BWI at 11:46 a.m. and 4:16 p.m., arriving in
Newburgh at 1:01 and 5:31 p.m., respectively. They will then leave Newburgh at
1:25 and 6 p.m., arriving back at BWI at 2:40 and 7:20 p.m., respectively.
Study Finds Satisfied Customers
A recently released J.D. Power
and Associates study gave BWI an above-average rating in passenger satisfaction
for medium-sized airports.
The 2000 Domestic Airport Passenger
Satisfaction Study rated 29 airports around the country. Airports were judged
based on a variety of concessions, friendly service, clean gate areas and
terminal facilities. The study showed that, overall, medium-size airports ranked
above the industry average.
The study was based on airport evaluations
by more than 6,500 people. Official Airline Guide's Pocket Flight Guide
subscribers were asked to rate a variety of areas pertaining to the departure
and arrival process at their home airports in addition to other airports they
frequently use.
Passengers Still Increasing
Although not
breaking monthly records as it did during the summer, BWI posted a 16.8 percent
increase in passengers during September, the 23rd consecutive month in which BWI
passenger growth has reached double digits.
Southwest Airlines, BWI's
leading carrier, led the way with a 38 percent increase over September 1999. US
Airways, BWI's second leading carrier, grew by 15.1 percent.
International airlines that experienced growth in September compared
with last September included Icelandair, up 18.6 percent; Air Jamaica, 12.5
percent; and Air Ontario, 12.2 percent.
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November 23, 2000 
